The World This Hour - The World This Hour for 2025/03/09 at 12:00 EDT

Episode Date: March 9, 2025

The World This Hour for 2025/03/09 at 12:00 EDT

In Scarborough, there's this fire behind our eyes. A passion in our bellies. It's in the hearts of our neighbors. The eyes of our nurses. And the hands of our doctors. It's what makes Scarborough, Scarborough. In our hospitals, we do more than anyone thought possible. We've less than anyone could imagine.

But it's time to imagine what we can do with more. Join Scarborough Health Network and together, we can turn grit into greatness. Donate at lovescarborough.ca. From CBC News, the world this hour. I'm Gina Louise Phillips. Today, the Liberal Party of Canada will pick its new leader. That person will take over for Justin Trudeau,

who has led the country for nearly 10 years. But the winner of today's race does not become prime minister automatically. The host of CBC's Rosemary Barton Live tells us what to expect in the days and weeks to come. The front-runner continues to be Mark Carney. We found out over the past couple of days that he's raised more than $4 million in two months, a large amount of money in a short amount of time. And he certainly has the vast amount of caucus support and cabinet support. If it turns out to be Mr. Carney, he of course doesn't have a seat in the House of Commons either.

So there's a strong expectation that we could find ourselves in an election in just a matter of weeks. If one of the other people win, there is still a very strong possibility of an election. Because of the crisis that we are facing by the United States and Donald Trump, there is a feeling in Ottawa that whatever government is needed will need a strong mandate from Canadians about how to take on Donald Trump going forward. CBC Radio 1 will have dedicated coverage hosted by Susan Bonner of Your World Tonight and Catherine Cullen of The House. That begins just before 5 p.m. Eastern time.

Cases of child exploitation in Canada have seen a steep increase in the last decade, jumping more than a thousand percent according to police. Nicole Williams reports. We're seeing unfortunately devastating consequences. Neelia Yuda is manager of Children of the Streets in Port Coquitlam, BC, an organization that works with children who are victims of sexual exploitation. It sees firsthand that cases across Canada are on the rise. 106 individuals were arrested. It's why police launched Project Steal.

In Ottawa this week, RCMP Inspector Matthew Girard says the national operation set out to target abusers over two weeks last month. The diligent efforts of all 63 law enforcement partners involved resulted in 40 victims identified. We don't have a comprehensive online safety regime in Canada. Jacques Marcoux is with the Canadian Centre for Child Protection and says Canada is falling far behind in introducing regulations to make online spaces safer. Nicole Williams, CBC News, Ottawa. In Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky says he is feeling hopeful about this week's talks in Saudi Arabia.

His representatives will be meeting with US officials to chart a path to peace. As we hear from Anna Cunningham, the talks come amid relentless Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities. Ukraine's air force says its defences shot down 73 of 119 drones launched overnight by Russia on six Ukrainian regions. President Vladimir Zelensky says Russia is proving its cruelty daily and is not thinking about how to end the war. But an end to this war now in its fourth year will be up for discussion in Saudi Arabia this week.

Ukrainian diplomatic and military representatives are due to meet with a US delegation Tuesday, understood to include the White House's National Security Adviser Mike Walz and the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Vladimir Zelensky will be in Saudi Arabia Monday for a planned meeting with the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, but will not attend the US meeting. Zelensky says he believes there will be solutions and that Ukraine is determined. Anna Cunningham, CBC News, London. Syria is facing some of the worst violence since the overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad

last December. The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says more than 1,000 people have died since the violence erupted on Thursday. It says more than 700 were civilians targeted by security forces aligned with the new government. The Human Rights Group is accusing the regime of revenge killings in Assad's home region. And that is The World This Hour. For news anytime go to our website cbcnews.ca. For CBC News, I'm Gina Louise Phillips. .